CA1100540A

CA1100540A - Target game with target actuated ejection means

Info

Publication number: CA1100540A
Application number: CA296,635A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Masaki Ikeda
Original assignee: Tomy Kogyo Co Ltd
Current assignee: Tomy Kogyo Co Ltd
Priority date: 1977-02-22
Filing date: 1978-02-08
Publication date: 1981-05-05
Also published as: JPS566800Y2; US4212412A; US4266777A; JPS53115699U

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE

A game employing a gun capable of emitting a light beam can be played using a target apparatus which ejects objects each time this apparatus is appropriately actuated by a light beam. The target apparatus includes a turntable which is capable of being rotated by a motor.
The turntable includes a plurality of holders, each of which is adapted to hold an object to be ejected from the apparatus. An ejection lever is mounted on the base of the apparatus so as to be capable of ejecting an object from a holder positioned directly above it. After such an object is ejected the motor rotates the turntable. Structures are provided for returning the ejection lever to a position in which it can eject an object from an adjacent holder and for indexing the turntable so that an adjacent holder is above the lever as a result of such rotation of the turn-table. A circuit including a photocell is provided on the apparatus for operation of the ejection lever so as to eject an object from a holder positioned above this lever.

Description

~`~lOOS4(~ i BACKG~ROUND OF l`HE INVENTI`ON

The invention set forth in this specification pertains to a new and improved target game employing a target apparatus. More specifically it pertains to a target apparatus as indicated which is constructed so as to propel various objects away from the target apparatus as the target apparatus is actuated during the use of the game.
It will, of course, be recognized that many different types of so-call-ed targets or target apparatuses have been designed and constructed in the past.
Such apparatuses have been designed so as to be capable of being actuated by a `~
physical object such as a~missile, a ball, a bullet or the like and they have also been designed so as to be actuated by an appropriate beam such as a beam of visible, infrared or other type of radiation. In general such prior targets or target apparatuses may be regarded as either passive or active depending upon whether or not t

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they are constructed 50 that a mech~nica1 action r~su1ts from the proper en~g~ment or intendecl en~ ement o~ such a target appara~us by either an ob3ec~ or a type of r~diation.

The present invention is pri~arily concerned wi~h active typc target ap~aratus which ~rovide a si~nificant, easily obser~ed mechanical action in response to the intendcd manner of target actuation. In essence, the targot apparatuses of the pro~nt ~nvention may be considered ~s action-rcaction type sppara~uses sincc when they arc a~-propriately actua~ed cUch act~on cau~es R subsequent phys~ca1 reaction.

Such 8Ct ivo type tar~et appnratuses as ha~o b¢en constr~ctod and util~ zed in th- past are not consideroc~ as ~esirablc as rcasonably possible ~or comm~rcial and ~1ay purposcs for on~ or more of a variety of relate~ reasons.
Such apparatus~s have frcquent1y been constructod în such a m~nner as to be relative1y ex~ens~ve. Freq~ently they havo bcen d~slgncd in such a manner as to be relatiYely co~plex from a mschanica1 standpoint. On occas~on s;lc1l devices are considere~ to ~ave been unreliablo fro~ a ~ech-snical standpoint and to hav~ been conctructcd in such amann~r so as to be relatively lncapab1e of ef~ectiv~1y : withstand~ng ~h~ phys1ca1 abus~ normally accor~Q~ any toy-type structure.

l~ S~l~

SU'.'f'IARY ()P T~ I NVF.NTI ON

As a result o these f~ctors ~t is consi~'ered that there is a necd for new and improved tar~ct games more ~ccifically ~arget games e~loyin~ new and improved target ~pparatuses. A broad objective of thc prcsont in~rention is to ful~ill thls need. Tho inv~ntion is intended to provide tar~et appsratuse~ of an active type which are relat~ely si~ple to con~truct at a co~p~rativcly nominal cost, which aro m~chanically comparatively simplo, which aro o capable of w~hstanding roqsonable physlcal ~buse, which are capable o~ bein~ uscd o~rar a F)rolonged period without maintenanco difficulty or repair ~n~ which are quite desirable because o~ tlle action ach~e w d w~lcn ap~ropriately actuatod. The l~ttor aspect o~ the in~ention is considered quite ~portant in connection with thc play value of a targot apparatw in accordanco with this invention.

Th~ noted ob~ectives of th~ ~nvcnt~on are achiev~d by pro~idin~ a target ga~ne h~ving a target appnratus, the tar~et apparat~ls includ$ng a hol~ g mcan~ ca~able o~
holding at least one articlo, ejection mean~ ~or o~ectin~
the art~cl~ held by the holdin~ ~eans, tar~et means for controlling the oper~tion of the e~ectlon ~eans so that when th~ tar~et ga~ ls actu.~ted s8id c~ection mcans is operated so as to cause o~ection of an ~rticle held ~y the 110~5gO

holding ~eans and act~ation means for causin~ actuation of the tar~et means in which tho improvem~nt compri~es: the holding means comprising a turnt~ble rotatably ~ounfcd on the appsratus, the turntable includin~ a pl-lrality of sepa-rate article holdors located around its perlphery, ~o~ive means for rotating the turntablo connccted to the turntablet tho turntable being locatad ralative to the ejoction m~atls so that the e~ection means ~s capable of e~ecting an article from an adjace~t on~ of tho article holders and so that lo successivo of the art~cle holders aro locate~ ad~acent to the o~ection means as a rosult of the rotation of tho turn-tabls, the apparatu ~ncludin~ control mear.s for controllin~
the rotation of tho turntable each ~i~e the tar~et ~eans is actuated so that successi~o of thc article holders are locatod ad~ac~nt to the c~ection means each ti~o tAe targ~t maans ~5 actuatot.

A preferred target apparatus ln accordance with thi~ invention is preferably constructed so as to include variou~ facets snd featuros which ~re not indicatcd in the preccding but which are subsequently indicate~ ln ~he remainder of this spacificatio~l an~ in the accompanyin~
~lraw~ngs. Th~ portion of such an apparatus involvin~ tha turntable and the various associate~ ~nd related parts o~
th~ apparatus arc considered to be of such a charact~T as :~ to bc capablo of being utillzed for a varioty cf ~ifferent~

..: -: i, :~OQS40 divorse pur~os~ other than in A Sp~Ci~iC target ga~o as ~et forth ln this specificatlon.

BRIEF DES~IPTION OF Tll~ DRAWIN~S

The in~ntion i5 best ~ore r~ully dcscribed with re~erenc~ to the accompanyin~ ~rawings ln which:
Fi~. 1 is a top plan view of a presently preerred embodlment or for~ o a tar~ct a!~p~ratus in accor~.ance with tnis invention ln which two articl~s simulating roc~ts are located upon article hol~rs for~lng a part o ~he target apparatu3;
Plg. 2 is a sid~ elevationai view o~ the structure 3hown in Fi%. l;
. Fi~. 3 i5 a partial cross-sectional ~i~w ta~en a~
line 3-3 of F~g. 2;
Fig. 4 ~s a partial cross-sectlonal v~ow at an enlarged sc~l~ tsken 8t line 4-~ o~ Fi~. 2, this view corre~pond~ng to n cross-sectional Yi~W taken at line 4'4' in th~ subsequont Pig. 5;
Pig. S ~s a cross-sectional view ~Xe~l at lin~
5-5 o P~. 4; and Fig. 6 i~ a schematic circuit diagra~ G ~ ~n electric circuit capable of be~ng utilized in a target apparatus illustrated in tho precedin~ ures.

.

~10~5~0 Prom a careful consideration of th~ accompanyin~
drawln~s and th~ remain~er of this s~ecifica.ion it ~ill b~
reali~od that the precis~ targe~ apparatus illustr~ted includes or emhodies th~ principles or features of this in~ention defin~d in the ap~ended claims. These s ~.e featuros or principles can easily be ombodied within other somewhat differently appearing an~/or so~ehhat ~i~f~rcn~ly constructed structures through tho use or exerc$se of rou-tin~ ~ngin~erinB 5Xill.

o DETAIL~D ~EscnIpT~oN

In the drawin~s there is shol~n a targ~t apparstus lO which is a~apted to be utili~od Witll a si~ulate~l ~un 12 capable of e~ittinK a beam of li~ht as d.iagrammatically ill~strated in FiR. 6. Such an apparat~ts lO and ~u~ 12 are considered to constitute a complete tar~et ~ame (not sep~rately numbered) which i~ ada~ted to be use;' as a tmit for play purpos~s. The tar~t apparatus lO inclu~les an elon~ated hollow ba~ 14 which is constructed so as to internally hold e~cctric batteries 16, circuit components 18 as ~re mor~ spocifically ln~icated in conncction wit.l F$g. ~, a photocell 20 s~rvln~ as on~ o~ ~hese components ~n~ an int~rnal spring motor 22.

This spring ~otor 2~ ls attached to an upst~ndin~

54b sh~t 24 provided with a keyway type notch 2~. T~ s'laft 24 is constructed so that ~ centrally loca~cd hub 28 on a turntable 30 may be locat~d on the sh.~ f t ~4 with a key or projection 32 on tilC hu~ Z8 fitting int;~ t~-e notch 26 so as to mecha~ically couple the turntablc 3Q with the motor 2~
through *he shaft 24. The particular ~otor 22 prcferably utiliz~d is a common spring motor which is adapt~d to be wound when ti~ hub 28 is turned in the direction o the arrow in Pig. 1.

This plac¢s the motor 22 in ~uch a condition t.7at it will automatically ten~ to rotate th~ turnt~ble 30 i~ a count~r-clockwise direction as view~d in Fi~. 1. Sucll rota~ion is controlled as herelnafteT descri~ed so t~t succ~ss$Ye article holders 3~ Are rotat¢d relati.ve to an e~ection lever 36 ~ocated ~en~rally within the base 14.
Each of these article bolders 34 is provide~ with a bottom openin~ 38 throu~h which the e~ection lever 3h can pro~ect ~hen i~ an uncocked posit~on as in.licated by phantom lines ~r, Fig. 4. Each of thc article holders 34 is associated with both a cockin~ surfacc 40 ancl a stop projection 4 which are located on the turnt~ble 30.

The e~ection lever 3G is rotatably mounted on a small shaft 44 ~o that it can rotate from a c~cXed position a~ sho~n ~n Fig~. 4 and 5 to an uncoc~ecl position as indicated in the prccedlng. Thc e~ection lever 36 is of a bell cr~
shape .~o that an end 46 of it will rest a~sinst an in~erior ~all 48 within the base 14 in order to limit rotation of this lcver 3fi. The other en~ 50 o the eiect~on lever 36 ls provicled with a slopin~ surface 52 an~ with a hammer~like pro~oction 54 shaped so as to be capable of ~n~a~ and propelling upwardly and outwardly away from the apparat~ls 10 an article 56 located on a holder 34 immediat~ly abov~
the lever 36. In the drawings only two of such articles 56 are illustrated. Such articles 56 may be ~hape~ so as to si~ulate space ships or rockets b~caùse o~ tlle manner in which they aro moved during the usc of the ~pparatus 10.

The le~or 36 ~s constr~Jcted in the ~anner indica~ed so th~t it will be rotatod from the uncocked position identified in the precedlns to t~e cocked position as a res~lt of thc 5urface 52 being eng~ged by a coc~in~ surface 40 when tho motor 22 op~rates so as to rotate the turntable 30. During such rotat~on of the turntable 30 this en~a~e-ment w{ll rotate tho ejection lever 36 downwardly a~ainst ~ coil spr~ng 58 located aroun~ the shaft 44 ~o as to place this ~pring 58 under compression. During such rotation sloping sur~aces 60 leadin~ to latch hooks 62 located upon the e~ection lever 36 and a latch lever 64 will sli~e relati~e to on~ anotAer until such time a5 the hooks 62 are brought ~nto enga~e~4ent. The latch le~er 64 15 rotata~ly . ~ - -.. . .
... .
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mounted upon a sh~ft 66 an~l is biased ~enerally toward the e~ection lever 36 throu~h the use of a co~.vention~l ooil spring 68.

Inclexing of the turntabie 30 ~o that eac,l ti~n~
thls turntable 30 i~ turned as a result of t'le operation of the motor 22 a holder 34 is located ~ cent to tlle levor 36 and i~ co~trolled and accomplished throuF I the use of what may bo regarde~ as an csc3pement l~ver 7() anl through the uso o~ t~e stop ~ro~ctions 42 illustrated in 10 the preceding. Thc escape~ent lever 70 i5 prefer~bly constructed so as to incl~udc a c~ntrally locate-l b~rrel-llke part 7~ mounted aro ln:l a ¢ha~t 74 within t'-~ base 11. This escapement lever 70 a~50 preferably inclu~es A cyl indrical part. 76 located around thc s1laft 74 ~d~accrlt th~ pa~t 72.
A pro~ection 78 is located on this part 76. The parts 72 and 76 are coupled together ns ~ uni c t~rou~l~ th~ us~ o ~ a small co~l spring ~0 so that they normally rotate to~ethcr as a unit. They are, however, sor.ewhat movable relative to on~ another so as to pr~vent ~aF~age ~f or any reason 20 the turntable 30 should ~e ~urned in an undes ired manner.
?~'ormally all of thu parts of the escape~rer~t le~er 70 are biased to~other as a unit ~y the sprin~ ~0 in such a manncr that whe~. Q force ls applIed to a le~rer arD~ ~2 e~ctending fro~ the ?art 72 that t~te lcver 70 w~ ll be rotated.

~: , o ~ h~ le~r ~rm 32 is held by a spriag ~4 gencr~lly bene~th tll~ eiection lever 3fi in such a position tlat each time this eje~tion lever 36 is mo~ed from a~. uncoc~ed position to a coc~ed po5ition the lev~r arm 8~ will be engR~ed by the ejection le~er 3~ so as to rotate t:le e~tire lever 70 to a ~osition in which the projection 7~ will be physically eng~ed by a stop pro~ction 42. Because o~ t;~is the projections 42 ssrve as a p~rt of wh~t in fact is ~
esca~ement mechanism uscd for control purposes. ~ith ~his structuro evcry time the ejection lever 36 is ~oved from the cocked position the escapeme t lever 70 is released to tho extent necc~ary so th~t it will be rotate~ ~s 8 result of contact with thc 3top pro~ection 4~ by the action of the motor 22 to a sufficient exten~ so as to permit rotation of the turntable 30. As 3uch r~t~tion occurs the ~ection lev~r 36 will, of course, be returned to its initi~l cockcd pos~ tion and this will automatically rot~rn t`le esc3pemcnt lever 70 to a positlon where it will bloc~ further rotation of the turntable 30 and in~ex an article holde~ 34 r~lative to the ojoction lever 36.

It ~s bel~e~e~ that it will be appar~n2 from the precedin~ that in order to remove an article stch as t~e articl~ 56 from a holder 34 and ir. ~rder to per~;it a furtller article 56 to be mov~d so that ~t can su'~sequently be e~ec~ed from th~ noxt holder 34 ~t is n~cessary to a~propri~tely llQ~540 actuate the 1atch 1ever 64 in orcler to re1ease thr ~j ectien 1ever 36. Although this latch 1e~er 64 ca3. be actuato-I in a variety of ways 5uch a~, f~-r ~xample, by dLrect mechnnic11 contac~ by an o~iect, it is cons~derecl pres~erab1e to ~ctuate ths latch lever ~4 thro~lgh the us~ o f ~ solenoid 8ti . When such a solenoid 86 is us~d it is, of course. n~c~ssary ~o mount appropriate iron c>r similsr plates 88 on the latch lever 64 so t!;at it will ~e attr~cted to thc solenoid ~6.

Althou~h the solenoid 86 ~ay be actuate~ by o virtually any type of desired swi~ch (not shown) i~ is prefcrrod to utili~e a clrcu~ t lO0 ~or ~is purpose as indicated in ~ig. 6. Various components of this circuit 100 have been broa~lly designated as circuit components 1 in the preceding discu~sion. This circuit loO includes a conYentionRl pul5e am~l~ fier 102, a conventio~;~l orlc-shot multivibrator 104 and a power am~lifier 106. The pulse amplifier 102 1~ connected to th~ terminals tnot ~parately nwnbered) of the photocoll 20 and the output of the power anpllfer 106 is connected to the co~ 1 108 o~
the solenoid 86. Because the pulse amplifier 102, the one shot multivibrator 104 and the pow~r ampllfier lû6 ar~ all of a conventional character it is not con~idered necessary to describe them in detail h~rein.

Thi~ c~rcuit lO0 is adapted to be actuatec~ whenev~r ' -~he gun 1~ is sppropriately ac~u~.ltcd 50 as to pro3 ect a be.
of li~ht tnot separately numbere~ a~ainst the photocell 7().
This will, of course, cause sh~ solenot.l ~6 to be actuate~
50 as to move the latc,. lever 64 to releaso th~ c~ ection lever 36 in order to achiove the mode o f oper~tion indicated in the precedin~.

If desired the rel~tive dif~iculty of ~ctua~ln~
the target apparatus 10 in tlliS m~nnor may be Yaried throu~h the us~ of an apperture pl~te 110. Thi~ plate 110 is Opaql~e 10 and is providc~l with two differcnt op~nings 112 of differenc sizes. It may be manually po~i~ioned withln ~ ho1der 114 so that oither of the ope~.in~s 11~ ~ ioeated in front o~
ehe photocell 20. '~hen the s~all~r o~ t'-~ openings 11~ is in ~ront of the photocell 20 it is ob~riously more di~ficult to actu~te the circsAit 100 th~ the larger of the openin~s 112 is ~n ~ront of the photocell 20.

Claims

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. A target game having a target apparatus, said target apparatus including holding means capable of holding at least one article, ejection means for ejecting an article held by said holding means, target means for controlling the operation of said ejection means so that when said target means is actuated said ejection means is operated so as to cause ejection of an article held by said holding means, and actuation means for causing actuation of said target means in which the improvement comprises, said apparatus including a base, said holding means comprising a turntable rotatably mounted on said base, said turntable including a plurality of separate article holders located around its periphery, motive means for rotating said turntable connected to said turntable, said turntable being located relative to said ejection means so that said ejection means is capable of ejecting an article from an adjacent one of said article holders and so that successive of said article holders are located adjacent to said ejection means as a result of rotation of said turntable, said apparatus including cooperating mechanical escapement means on said turntable and said base responsive to operation of said ejection means to release the turntable for rotation by said motive means and stop such rotation when the next successive article holder is located adjacent to said ejection means.

2. A target game as claimed in claim 1 wherein:
said motive means comprises a spring motor mounted on said base.

3. A target game as claimed in claim 2 wherein:
said ejection means is associated with said escapement means so as to control the operation of said escapement means.

4. An apparatus having a base, a turntable, located on said base, said turntable including a plurality of article holding locations located around its periphery, motive means for rotating said turntable about its axis, ejection means for removing articles held at said article holding locations from said turntable, and indexing means for controlling movement of said turntable so that successive of said article holding locations are adjacent to said ejection means in which the improvement comprises:
said ejection means comprising an ejection lever pivotally mounted on said base so as to be capable of being rotated between a cocked position in which said ejection lever is spaced from said turntable and an uncocked position in which said lever extends upwardly from said base generally toward said turntable, said ejection lever being capable of engaging an article held at an article holding location on said turntable which is adjacent to said lever when said lever moves from said cocked position to said uncocked position, biasing means biasing said lever toward said uncocked position, a cocking surface corresponding to each of said article holding locations located on said turntable, said cocking surfaces being located so as to be capable of sequentially engaging said ejection lever when said turn-table is rotated and when said ejection lever is in said uncocked position so as to rotate said ejection lever from said uncocked position so said cocked position, latch means for holding said ejection lever in said cocked position, latch release means for moving said latch means so as to permit said biasing means to move said ejection lever from said cocked position to said uncocked position, said indexing means comprising an escapement lever and a plurality of stop projections, each of said stop projections corresponding to one of said article holding locations located on said turntable, said escapement lever pivotally mounted on said base, said escapement lever being capable of being rotated between a blockin position and a non-blocking position, said escapement lever being located so as to engage one of said stop means in order to limit rotation of said turntable in said blocking position, said escapement lever being located so as not to interfere with the rotation of said turntable in said non-blocking position.
said escapement lever being located so as to be engaged by said ejection lever as said ejection lever is moved from said uncocked to said cocked position so as to be rotated to said blocking position.

5. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein:
said motive means is capable of rotating said turntable when said latch means is operated so as to release said ejection lever for movement from said cocked position to said uncocked position so that a one of said stop means engaged by said escapement lever exerts a force causing rotation of said escapement lever from said blocking position to said non-blocking position.

6. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein:
said escapement lever is a bell crank lever, said escapement lever being located so that one end thereof is capable of being engaged by said ejection lever as said ejection lever is rotated from said uncocked to said cocked position so as to rotate said escapement lever from said non-blocking to said blocking position, and so that the other end thereof is capable of engaging an adjacent one of said stop means when said escapement lever is in said blocking position.

7. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein:
said biasing means comprises a spring.

8. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein:
said turntable includes an opening extending therethrough underneath each of said article holding locations, said ejection lever is capable of passing through an adjacent one of said openings in said turntable as said ejection lever is moved from said cocked to said uncocked position.

9. An apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein:
said ejection lever is oriented relative to said base and said turntable so as to apply a force to an article located in one of said article holding locations adjacent to said ejection lever so as to propel said article upwardly and outwardly away from said apparatus when said ejection lever moves from said cocked to said uncocked position.

10. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4 including:
circuit means including a photocell for producing an electric signal in response to a light change, electromechanical means for releasing said latch means from said ejection lever when a signal is received by said electromechanical means from said circuit means, said electromechanical means being operatively connected to said latch means and to said circuit means.

11. An apparatus as claimed in claim 10 wherein:
said electromechanical means comprises a solenoid.

12. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein:
said motive means is capable of rotating said turntable when said latch means is operated so as to release said ejection lever for movement from said cocked position to said uncocked position so that a one of said stop means engaged by said escapement lever exerts a force causing rotation of said escapement lever from said blocking position to said non-blocking position, said escapement lever is a bell crank lever, said escapement lever being located so that one end thereof is capable of being engaged by said ejection lever as said ejection lever is rotated from said uncocked to said cocked position so as to rotate said escapement lever from said non-blocking to said blocking position, and so that the other end thereof is capable of engaging an adjacent one of said stop means when said escapement lever is in said blocking position, said turntable includes an opening extending therethrough underneath each of said article holding locations, said ejection lever is capable of passing through an adjacent one of said openings in said turntable as said ejection lever is moved from said cocked to said uncocked position.

13. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein:
said motive means is capable of rotating said turntable when said latch means is operated so as to release said ejection lever for movement from said cocked position to said uncocked position so that a one of said stop means engaged by said escapement lever exerts a force causing rotation of said escapement lever from said blocking position to said non-blocking position, said escapement lever is a bell crank lever, said escapement lever being located so that one end thereof is capable of being engaged by said ejection lever as said ejection lever is rotated from said uncocked to said cocked position so as to rotate said escapement lever from said non-blocking to said blocking position, and so that the other end thereof is capable of engaging an adjacent one of said stop means when said escapement lever is in said blocking position, said turntable includes an opening extending therethrough underneath each of said article holding locations, said ejection lever is capable of passing through an adjacent one of said openings in said turntable as said ejection lever is moved from said cocked to said uncocked position, said electromechanical means comprises a solenoid, said biasing means comprises a spring, said ejection lever is oriented relative to said base and said turntable so as to apply a force to an article located in one of said article holding locations adjacent to said ejection lever so as to propel said article upwardly and outwardly away from said apparatus when said ejection lever moves from said cocked to said uncocked position.

14. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4 including:
target means for actuating said apparatus, said target means being operatively connected to said latch means.